Green scheme ditched

The federal government has ditched plans for a $210 million program to replace the botched green loans scheme in an admission of fundamental flaws in its home energy efficiency policies.

Climate Change and Energy Efficiency Minister
Greg Combet
said there was a risk the planned green start program could be dogged by the same problems that had beset the green loans scheme, because it would rely on the same “poor quality" data on home assessments.

The green start program was supposed to begin by the end of this year, replacing the green loans, which the government had already announced would be axed following the collapse earlier this year of the troubled home insulation program.

Mr Combet said green loans would now continue until February 28 and defended the $120 million spent on it. “Hundreds of thousands of home sustainability assessments have been conducted and conducted professionally," he said.

More than 4000 green loans assessors were left without work as a result of the poor administration of the program and the government has received at least 14 legal claims plus 159 compensation claims.

Mr Combet said $30 million of the funds saved by axing the scheme would be used to assist assessors to pay up to $2500 to meet half the costs of extra training or to provide up to $3000 for assessors who had paid for accreditation but never used it.

A damning audit report in September highlighted major failings in the administration of the green loans scheme, which was a Labor promise ahead of the 2007 election.

The government said in February the scheme – which had provided households with interest-free loans of up to $10,000 for home assessments and environmental improvements – would be replaced with a scaled-down green start program, limited to home audits.

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Mr Combet said the government would consider other home energy efficiency measures next year in the context of its plans to introduce a carbon price. The government’s multi-party climate committee – including Labor, the Greens and two independents – yesterday outlined 11 principles to guide the development of a carbon price.

These included that it should be budget neutral, take account of impacts on the competitiveness of industry and provide confidence for long-term investments in low-emissions technology.

Greens deputy leader
Christine Milne
backed the decision to abandon the plans for a green start scheme and called for a national energy efficiency target. “It was badly designed, badly implemented and it would have been a waste of money to keep on with a badly flawed system," she said.

Coalition spokesman on climate
Greg Hunt
said it had been clear all along that the proposed scheme was flawed and the government should not have gone to the election promising it would be implemented.

He said yesterday’s decision continued a “pattern of disaster and mismanagement in the environment portfolio" that included the collapse of the home insulation program, the axing of the $8000 solar rebate and the ditching of the Citizens’ Assembly on climate change.